First Sunday of Advent – Cycle A

Reflecting on Matthew 24: 37-44

One of the endless blessings of positioning oneself in the direction of a spiritual life is that the giants come into your orbit and, through the sheer force of their goodness and faithfulness, pull you into new and scary directions. 

In my privileged life I’ve worked with the Sisters of Loretto, the Daughters of Charity, the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales, the Jesuits, the Franciscans, the Vincentians, the Dominicans, the  Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, the Benedictines, the Sisters of Charity, the Sisters of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Carmelites, and the Holy Cross Sisters and priests. The most powerful of all the communities, though, are the millions of laity who align themselves with the charisms of these historic orders.

I’m thinking of all those wonderful women and men on this first Sunday of Advent. The religious communities are such a rich and powerful piece of the Catholic experience and witness in the world. They are, more than anything, communities of Advent people. 

By choosing lives of poverty, chastity, and obedience, and by being so utterly counter-cultural in their prophetic lifestyles, they are pointing with their lives to a greater reality than what the eye can see. This world is coming to an end. Live as if the day is at hand.

Wake up. Pay attention to the rampant injustices around the world. Live with intentional kindness. Lead the way in advocating for everyone on the margins. Get to know people who don’t look like you. Use your life in preparation for the way of the Lord.

Every person ever born carries a certain indelible Advent mark, a certain surety that our lives are coming to an end. How, then, shall we live?

What is your Advent prophetic witness this season?

Kathy McGovern ©2019

Advent - Cycle A